UNGA week shows maternal, newborn health central to development (October 2014)The unprecedented level of attention to women’s and children’s health at this year's UN General Assembly is a welcome sign of the centrality of the health of mothers and newborns to a range of development challenges, including climate change, humanitarian crises, and the Ebola epidemic, says FCI interim president Amy Boldosser-Boesch.►The FCI Blog

Women's Lives Matter(October 2014)New research from FCI and partners shows that the impact of a woman’s death in pregnancy or childbirth goes far beyond the loss of a woman in her prime, and can mean death for her newborn and lasting damage to her surviving children.►The FCI Blog here, here, and here

Midwives and misoprostol: Saving lives from PPH(August 2014)FCI's Shafia Rashid shows that putting misoprostol in the hands of midwives and other non‐physician providers can help ensure that every woman has access to the uterotonic medicines that can protect her from the suffering and potential death that can be caused by postpartum hemorrhage.►The FCI Blog

FCI and partners show SRHR key to post-2015 agenda(August 2014)On behalf of the Universal Access Project, FCI has produced briefing cards on Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) and the Post-2015 Development Agenda, explaining the links connecting SRHR with other key development issues including environmental sustainability, gender equality, economic growth, educational attainment, and broader health goals.►News story andpublication

Mapping maternal health advocacy in African countries (July 2014) With support from Merck for Mothers, FCI published comprehensive mappings of the maternal health advocacy environment in two countries, Uganda and Zambia.►Uganda publication, Zambia publication, and The FCI Blog

Countdown to 2015 publishes new data on 75 priority countries(June 2013)Countdown to 2015, for which FCI serves as lead advocacy partner, launched its 2014 report at the PMNCH Partners' Forum, with updated evidence on 75 countries accounting for over 95% of maternal and chid deaths.►Countdown website

FCI builds midwives skills in evidence-based advocacy(June 2014) At the congress of the International Confederation of Midwives, FCI launched a toolkit to help national midwives' associations advocate for government investment and commitment to midwifery.►Publication and The FCI Blog

African advocates trained in budget advocacy (June 2014)Catherine Lalonde, senior program officer for Francophone Africa, reports on a regional workshop to train civil society, parliamentarians, and the media from 5 West African countries on budget analysis and advocacy for maternal and child health.►The FCI Blog

Advocacy success story: Burkina Faso broadens misoprostol access (April 2014) After focused advocacy led by FCI, the government of Burkina Faso revised its national Essential Medicines List to include misoprostol for the prevention and treatment of postpartum hemmorhage, the leading cause of maternal death. FCI's country director, Dr. Brahima Bassane, reported the details.►The FCI Blog

FCI Kenya study reveals impact of maternal death on children, families, communities(March 2014)An FCI research study sheds new light on the devastating impact of maternal death on families, bringing hard data and heart-breaking stories to a message that maternal health advocates have known for years: when women die, children suffer and families fall apart. ►Full storyand The FCI Blog

Burkina Faso: Expanding Access to Misoprostol for Postpartum Hemorrhage (October 2013) Many of Burkina Faso's more than 2,000 annual maternal deaths are caused by postpartum hemorrhage (PPH). FCI convened a high-level meeting to share strategies for making misoprostol — a safe and effective medicine for PPH — more affordable and accessible.►The FCI Blog

'What about an ounce of cure…?' (April 2013)While support for the use of misoprostol to prevent post-partum hemorrhage (PPH) — the single leading cause of maternal mortality — has been growing steadily, there has not been equal emphasis on treating PPH when it does occur.►The FCI Blog

FCI active advocate at Commission on Population and Development

The UN Commission on Population and Development (CPD) held its annual 2011 meeting in New York in mid-April, and FCI was one of a small number of NGOs invited to present an oral statement to the Commission. Global advocacy director Debra Jones, saying that maternal death is "a tragic and infuriating reminder of the vast gender inequities that persist in so many countries and societies; and of the terrible gaps between rich and poor countries, and between rich and poor communities within countries," called on the CPD and member governments to finally keep their often-repeated promises to invest in women's health and provide reproductive and maternal health and family planning services to all women.

FCI was on the scene throughout the CPD's long week of intense negotiations that lasted late into the night, advocating for a strong final resolution that reinforced and strengthened long-standing commitments to reproductive health and rights. You can read our blog posts here and here.

Ann Starrs blogs on Global Strategy accountability

When UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon formally launched the Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health last September, a range of stakeholders made commitments totaling $40 billion for improved maternal and child health. Accountability will be the key to ensuring that these commitments translate into clear, quantifiable progress toward achievement of MDG targets by 2015. Last month, the UN announced the establishment of a high-level Commission on Information and Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health, and FCI president Ann Starrs was named to its "working group on results." ReadAnn's latest blog on NGO engagement in the accountability commission's work (see Ann's earlier blog post here).Learn more...

FCI submits statement for CPD meeting

The UN Commission on Population and Development holds its 44th session in New York on April 11 to 15, 2011. This year's session, chaired by the ambassador from Malawi, is on the theme Fertility, reproductive health and development. As an NGO registered in consultative status with the UN's Economic and Social Council, FCI submitted a statement for consderation by the CPD. "In order to meet the goals of the ICPD Programme of Action and achieve the MDGs," FCI wrote, "governments must protect and promote the human rights of women and girls, including their sexual and reproductive rights; empower women to control their fertility; ensure universal access to reproductive health; and continue efforts to improve maternal health and prevent the needless deaths of hundreds of thousands of women each year from complications of pregnancy and childbirth." Read the full statement...

Building evidence to make the casePolicies only change when policy makers believe that the scale of the problem is clearly understood, cost estimates are accurate, new policies will be efficacious, and recommended health interventions have been proven to work. Learn about FCI's work to build the evidence base on maternal and reproductive health... Read more...

FCI recognized by MacArthur Foundation for creativity, effectiveness

Family Care International was one of only 13 extraordinary nonprofit organizations around the world selected to receive the 2013 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions.This prestigious award represented the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation's recognition of FCI's achievements and the impact of our work. FCI was also recipient of the 2008 UN Population Award, given by the UN Population Fund in recognition of two decades of work to save women' s lives. Read more here...

FCI top-rated by charity watch

FCI has been named a "Top-Rated Charity" by the American Institute of Philanthropy, a prominent charity rating service whose standards for evaluating charities are considered the most stringent in the sector. Support FCI now

FCI awarded top transparency rating

Family Care International is a Gold-level participant in the GuideStar Exchange, demonstrating our institutional commitment to transparency.